COOS BAY, Ore. -- Two barges owned by Florida-based Titan Salvage are due to arrive in Coos Bay around mid-afternoon on March 29 to begin the first steps of preparation for the planned removal of wreckage from the New Carissa later this spring.

The "Karlissa A" and "Karlissa B" barges – each 170 by 80 by 13 feet – will be moored at the Central Dock in Coos Bay upon their arrival. Local contractors will make repairs to and prepare the barges for being deployed to the wreck site later this spring.

After a temporary staging area is completed on Foredune Road, the barges will be jacked up and floated next to the New Carissa, a 195-meter ship that inbound from Japan and preparing to pick up a load of wood chips in 1999 when the catastrophic incident occurred, and serve as work platforms during the dismantling process.

More information about the removal process is available on the Department of State Lands (DSL) Web site – www.oregonstatelands.us. The department is the state agency that oversees the territorial sea, in which the stern section of the New Carissa rests.

DSL has a contract with Titan to remove the wreckage by Oct. 1, 2008. All funds for the removal are from a $25 million jury award paid by the ship's owners in 2002.

The State Land Board consists of Governor Theodore Kulongoski, Secretary of State Bill Bradbury and State Treasurer Randall Edwards. The Department of State Lands administers diverse natural and fiscal resources. Many of the resources generate revenue for the Common School Fund, such as state-owned rangelands and timberlands, waterway leases, estates for which no will or heirs exist, and unclaimed property. Twice a year, the agency distributes fund investment earnings to support K-12 public schools. The agency also administers Oregon's Removal-Fill Law, which requires people removing or filling certain amounts of material in waters of the state to obtain a permit.